How To Stay Focused And Grow Your Life
What we focus on becomes extremely powerful. Think about when you buy a new car. All of a sudden you start to see that same car everywhere you go. We can change our brain through experiences because It influences our mind. Experience changes the brain. Our brain is constantly evolving itself to be the best one it can be for us. Experience is the fuel that shapes everything we see, feel, and sense.
If we’re focusing on what we don’t want, such as; negativity, bad habits, insecurities, etc. That manifests into our brain and it then controls all of our senses. Whatever we focus on is always “good” or “bad”. Replace the bad with the good and our life starts to grow.
What Makes Staying Focused Difficult?
Being Physically Unfit
Everything is more difficult when we’re sick, tired or stressed. Our mind wanders a lot more into a negative pattern. Exercise helps our body regulate hormones and process insulin, which balances our mood and stress levels. Exercising and being fit leads to more productivity and brain focus, which is vital in improving the quality of life we have.
An Emotional Brain
How hard is it to stay focused when you’re worried about something else? That something else has a lot to do with the limbic system. The Limbic System is part of the brain that supports functions such as emotions, behaviour, motivation, and memory. The way we feel about certain things can destroy our productivity and performance if we have a negative view. It’s important to figure out what triggers our emotional reactions and loss of focus.
Too Many Distractions
Technology is a gift and a curse. It provides us with knowledge, experience, and ways to connect. But on the other hand, It’s one of the biggest focus killers in an ever-evolving world. Most of us have a hard time compartmentalising our messages, emails, and notifications so they don’t pull us from other tasks. I had this conversation with a friend of mine who’s a successful business owner. He told me he doesn’t check his emails or answer any phone calls on his day off. Even though you know think you know the reason, It’s always good to ask why; to understand other explanations. He said to me, “I’ve learned that if I answer the phone on a day off or read an email, there’s a chance it’s a problem. I won’t allow other peoples problems to affect me and distract me when I don’t need to address them yet”. Distractions are costly. They cost us time, which is our most valuable asset.
3 Ways To Stay Focused
Think Of Our Brain As a Muscle
Our brain needs to be trained to stay more focused. Plan and Visualise your biggest tasks each day. As an example, I must exercise and write. I make sure I visualise where I’ll do this and imagine the feeling of completing them both. When we truly think about what we want to achieve every single day, our subconscious will do everything it can to get it done. It’s important because our thoughts generate feelings, our feelings lead to action and action leads to results. This is the reality of focus.
Find Our Most Productive Timing
Do you get more done in the morning or in the evening? If we actively measure our productivity throughout the day, we find out ‘peak hours’ of performance. Paying attention to things such as energy levels, motivation, distractions, and moods gauge when productivity is at our highest. Being aware of this brings more focus on the daily. Trial and error this daily, and you will find that sweet spot of productivity.
Manufacture Willpower and Discipline
Decisions are a deal we have with our mind, that no matter what happens, the decision is made. This means that if we tell ourselves “I should exercise”, our mind procrastinates and we don’t act ( should’ve, could’ve would’ve right?) But how about we replace the “I should” to “I need”. The brain takes this more seriously and the likelihood of us exercising is a lot higher. Willpower and discipline should be manufactured at the same time. Willpower is the fuel of our actions and our discipline is our ability to go past laziness, intrusive thoughts and our comfort zone. The skills require constant practice, just like anything else. Building on this will keep us focused and stay on track to better habits and achievement.
Just Remember
Training our mind is everything. Ultimately, the goal is not to constantly stay focused. It’s short periods of distraction-free time every day that can be transforming. The good habits will start to build and you will start to achieve goals, become productive and a more self-aware person.
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Originally published at http://blakedevos.com.
